Interlaken

Why Interlaken works

Interlaken takes its name from its position between two glacial lakes — Lake Thun's steel-blue waters to the west and Lake Brienz's turquoise to the east — with the snow-capped trio of Eiger, Monch and Jungfrau visible from the town's central meadow, the Hohematte. Built as a Victorian spa resort, it retains grand belle-epoque hotels along the Hoheweg promenade, but its modern identity is adrenaline: paragliders drift down over the rooftops daily, landing in the same central park where cows once grazed, and outfitters run canyoning, skydiving and white-water rafting from storefronts along the main street. The Harder Kulm funicular climbs steeply above town to a two-pronged viewing platform overlooking both lakes and the Bernese Alps simultaneously — best at sunset. Boat cruises ply both lakes, stopping at lakeside castles like Oberhofen and Spiez. Interlaken is also the springboard for day trips to Jungfraujoch, the 'Top of Europe' railway station at 3,454m, and to the traditional villages of Grindelwald and Lauterbrunnen. Chocolate shops and Swiss-watch boutiques line the pedestrian core, and a funicular railway heritage dating to 1891 still operates on the Harder Kulm route.

Trip Snapshot

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